When is MLB Opening Day? Why there are three of them

As Major League Baseball teams prepare for their final days of spring training in Arizona and Florida, Opening Day is lurking.

All three of them.

With a made-for-streaming standalone game and a handful of three-game series spread over four days, all 30 teams will open over a three-day period, as a handful of new national television windows debut.

The openers will also have a decidedly interleague look to them, as seven of the 15 series will match up American and National league teams. And while many teams build an off day into the second day of the season to allow for inclement weather, eight of the openers will be held in climate-controlled or warmer-weather venues.

When does the 2026 MLB season begin?

The San Francisco Giants and New York Yankees will begin the season Wednesday, March 25, with an 8:05 p.m. ET matchup broadcast exclusively on Netflix. Left-hander Max Fried will start for the Yankees, opposed by Logan Webb for the Giants, whose manager, Tony Vitello, will be making his professional debut. Vitello is the first manager to leap directly from collegiate coaching - at Tennessee - to the top spot in a big league dugout.

The Yankees and Giants are off Thursday, March 26 before concluding their series the following two days, including the debut Fox Sports national broadcast on Saturday, March 28.

When is MLB Opening Day?

Oh, you mean real, widespread Opening Day? That would be Thursday, March 26, when 22 teams will be in action, with all the trappings of the season opener: Plenty of bunting (hung from stadium facades, anyways) and a parade in Cincinnati and probably some Clydesdales in St. Louis.

The season openers on Thursday, March 26 (all times p.m. ET):

• Pittsburgh Pirates at New York Mets, 1:15
• Chicago White Sox at Milwaukee Brewers, 2:10
• Washington Nationals at Chicago Cubs, 2:20
• Minnesota Twins at Baltimore Orioles, 3:05
• Boston Red Sox at Cincinnati Reds, 4:10
• Los Angeles Angels at Houston Astros, 4:10
• Detroit Tigers at San Diego Padres, 4:10
• Tampa Bay Rays at St. Louis Cardinals, 4:15
• Texas Rangers at Philadelphia Phillies, 4:15
• Arizona Diamondbacks at Los Angeles Dodgers, 8:30, NBC
• Cleveland Guardians at Seattle Mariners, 10:10

Which teams open Friday, March 27?

The Atlanta Braves (vs. Kansas City Royals), Toronto Blue Jays (vs. the Athletics) and Miami Marlins (vs. the Colorado Rockies) open Friday, March 27. All three series are of the three-game variety and these clubs opted to play three days in a row rather than use Friday as a potential weather make-up day (Miami and Toronto play in domed stadiums, anyway).